Bill would require schools to teach students about the history and contributions of AAPIs to the U.S.
In New Jersey -- where Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial group -- a coalition of teachers, students, parents, politicians, and community members are fighting for "thoughtful and comprehensive Asian American and Pacific Islander studies into K through 12 curriculums in New Jersey public schools."
Make Us Visible New Jersey is rallying around a bill currently in the state Legislature that would require schools to teach students about the history and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to the United States. The bill passed by a 34 to 2 vote last week in the state Senate, and now awaits a vote in the General Assembly.
And Other Things to Know From Angry Asian America.
Grant Imahara, Host of 'MythBusters' and 'White Rabbit Project,' Dies at 49
Grant Imahara, an electrical engineer and roboticist who co-hosted the popular TV science show MythBusters and Netflix's White Rabbit Project, has died following a brain aneurysm. He was 49. On MythBusters, Imahara used his technical expertise to design and build robots for the show and also operated the computers and electronics needed to test myths. As one of the few Asian American faces on television, he was a bright light for a lot of viewers who were inspired to pursue their interests science and technology. Rest in peace.
* * *
N.J. Police Chief Accused of Making Bigoted, Sexist Comments Steps Down
A New Jersey police chief accused of making derogatory comments about the nation's first Sikh attorney general and the state's first Asian American county prosecutor is stepping down. On July 4, an audio recording was posted to YouTube in which Trigo allegedly says former acting Union County Prosecutor Grace Park -- the first Asian American county prosecutor in New Jersey -- "is pretty hot" and "she got wide ones." Trigo also allegedly refers to New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, the nation's first Sikh state attorney general, as "that fucking guy with the turban" and says, "I wanna pull him like a top." Yeah, get this guy the fuck out.
* * *
Business owner targeted with death threats after buying Black Lives Matter billboard
A Houston business owner is facing backlash after purchasing a Black Lives Matter billboard in Houston. Le Hoang Nguyen, who is Vietnamese American, says he stands in solidarity of Black people and those who face racism in America. So he used his personal funds to purchase a bilingual billboard, located in southwest Houston, declaring public support of Black Lives Matter. But now he's facing backlash from people calling for a boycott of his business, and even calls for his lynching -- from his own Vietnamese community.
* * *
'Dungeons & Dragons' Book 'Oriental Adventures' Gets a Disclaimer
"We... recognize that some of the legacy content available on this website does not reflect the values of the 'Dungeons & Dragons' franchise today." Yeah, no shit. The company behind the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons has added a disclaimer to old titles on its online marketplaces -- most notably "Oriental Adventures," a book originally published in 1985 that has long been criticized by Asian fans. I'm not into role playing games, but I've been hearing about "Oriental Adventures" for years. It took this long to include a friggin' disclaimer... but how about just discontinuing the damn thing? I think the gamers will be okay.
* * *
Daniel Dae Kim Attached to Produce, Star in Rom-Com 'A Sweet Mess'
Daniel Dae Kim will produce and star in the film adaptation of the new novel A Sweet Mess a romantic comedy from writer Jayci Lee. The novel follows a pampered socialite turned small-town baker, who loves her secluded life, but a cake mix-up and a jaded celebrity food critic threatens her hard-won freedom. The fix? Go to California's wine country and guest star on the critic's cooking show. Kim's 3AD banner will produce. Somehow, this will be the first time in DDK's three-decade career where he'll be playing the romantic lead in a feature film.
And Other Things to Know From Angry Asian America.
Torrance Police Investigate Hate Crime After Store Finds Threatening Note
"Do not forget you are in America. We can do anything we want." In Torrance, California -- yes, friggin' Torrance again -- police are investigating this racist, threatening note that was found pinned to the front door of a Japanese cookware shop. Among many others things, the printed screed reads "go back to Japan" and threatens violence. "We are going to bomb your store if you don't listen and we know where you live." This is a hate crime. There's been some speculation on social media that the note, based on grammar and spelling, was not written by a native English speaker. Maybe. But also I have complete confidence that plenty of Americans, born and raised here, can't write for shit.
* * *
New Jersey Chinese Restaurant Vandalized with Racist COVID-19 Graffiti
A Chinese restaurant in New Jersey was vandalized with hateful messages regarding the coronavirus overnight Wednesday. The owner of New Gourmet Garden in Wyckoff arrived in the morning to discover racist spray-painted graffiti on the restaurant's storefront, including "coronavirus" and "COVID-19" with an arrow pointing at the front door and "Go home to China." The incident -- the second time a business has been vandalized during the pandemic -- is being investigated as a hate crime.
* * *
California Assemblyman Accused of Making Racist Remarks
A coalition of Silicon Valley civil rights leaders are calling for a California legislator to resign over "racist and bigoted" comments they say he made about African American and Latinx children's ability to learn and compete in school. Assemblyman Kansen Chu's alleged comments were printed in the Chinese language newspaper World Journal, in a June 11 article, in which Chu said many Hispanic Americans told him "they did not care about their children's education, they are busy with their livelihoods, and they did not intend to let their children attend college." Chu is also alleged to have said "many Hispanic and African ethnic groups are unable to compete or have the ability to continue their studies due to unresolved structural economic and educational problems." Chu claims the World Journal article "was written with the reporter's own opinion and not direct or literal quotes from me," and the translation was inaccurate.
* * *
Constance Wu Joins Period Rom-Com 'Mr Malcolm’s List'
Constance Wu has joined the cast of the period romantic comedy Mr. Malcolm's List. Based on the novel of the same name, the film stars Sope Dirisu as the titular Mr. Malcolm, London's most eligible bachelor. Wu will play Julia, a society lady who is jilted by Mr. Malcolm when she fails to meet one of the items on his list of requirements for a bride. Feeling shunned and humiliated, she enlists her friend Selina (Freida Pinto) to help her take revenge on Mr. Malcolm by tricking him into thinking he has found his perfect match. Who says Asians can't star in western-set period stories? Bring it, I say.
* * *
See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love
"How do we love in a time of rage? How do we fix a broken world while not breaking ourselves? Valarie Kaur -- renowned Sikh activist, filmmaker, and civil rights lawyer -- describes revolutionary love as the call of our time, a radical, joyful practice that extends in three directions: to others, to our opponents, and to ourselves. It enjoins us to see no stranger but instead look at others and say: You are part of me I do not yet know. Starting from that place of wonder, the world begins to change: It is a practice that can transform a relationship, a community, a culture, even a nation."
And Other Things to Know From Angry Asian America.
Girl Charged with Making Racial Slurs, Punching Asian Woman
In Edison, New Jersey, a teen girl has been arrested in the coronavirus-related hate crime attack on a 55-year-old Asian woman. According to police, the girl and a group of others surrounded the victim and yelled racial slurs regarding the origins of the coronavirus, then punched the woman on the back of the head. The teen was charged with bias intimidation, riot, simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct, as well as one count of violation of an emergency order because her presence outdoors during the stay-at-home order was not authorized or deemed essential.
* * *
Philly Lawyer Sues for Defamation Over Instagram Post
Last month in Philadelphia, Tess Wei got into an altercation with Josiah Knapp while she was jogging. Wei alleges that Knapp told her to "go back where you came from" and then coughed in her face. She posted a photo of Knapp on Instagram, saying "PHILLY! This man yelled at me and then came right up to me and coughed in my face. who tf is he?" Wei's cousin, Peter Chau, re-posted the photo, asking, "Anybody recognize this piece of shit?" Now Knapp, an attorney, is suing Wei and Chau for defamation.
* * *
Crisis Text Line Sees Spike in Activity from Asian Americans
The mental-health support Crisis Text Line received a fairly regular number of texts this year from people identifying as Asian -- until the week that Donald Trump called the coronavirus the "Chinese virus." The line also saw a large increase in crisis counselor applications from Asian Americans in the latter half of March.
* * *
Irene Hirano Inouye, champion of Japanese American causes, dies at 71
Irene Hirano Inouye, a prodigious fundraiser who led the nation’s premier Japanese American museum in Los Angeles and built bridges across cultures with groundbreaking projects, has died after a battle with with leiomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer. She was 71.
* * *
'Green Hornet and Kato' Movie Project Lands at Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures and Amasia Entertainment are partnering on The Green Hornet and Kato, which is currently in feature development. The Green Hornet which originated as a radio show during the 1930s, follows the adventures of publisher Britt Reid, who moonlights as the titular masked vigilante. The 1966 TV series is probably best known as the show that introduced U.S. audiences to Bruce Lee, who played The Green Hornet's intrepid, capable sidekick Kato. So... the most important question, as I always ask when talk about a new Green Hornet starts up: who's going to play Kato?
"If that offends you, then don't wear the turban."
A pair of New Jersey radio hosts have been suspended for referring to the state's Sikh attorney general as "turban man" during their program this week. Because you can always count on talk radio to keep it classy.
On Wednesday's edition of New Jersey 101.5's popular mid-day program The Dennis & Judi Show, hosts Dennis Malloy and Judi Franco were discussing Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal's recent order to suspend marijuana prosecutions. Malloy said he couldn't remember the attorney general's name, so he'd just refer to him as "the guy with the turban."
"Turban maaaaaan!" Franco replied, in a sing-song voice.
"If that offends you, then don't wear the turban," Malloy said. "And maybe I'll remember your name."
Grewal, who was born and raised in New Jersey, is the first Sikh American Attorney General in United States history. He responded to Malloy and Franco's comments on Twitter, calling it "small-minded intolerance."
Hoboken mayor Ravi Bhalla says death threats have been made against him and his family.
From NJ.com: Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla is publicly acknowledging death threats that have made against him and his family.
In a statement issued Friday afternoon following a security breach at City Hall Thursday, Bhalla said he and his family have been threatened and that the city is working with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force to improve security at City Hall.
"This incident, along with death threats to me and my family, is an unfortunate reminder that we need to take security seriously," Bhalla said.
A teacher at Bergen Academies High School reportedly singled out Korean students and said "I hate Koreans."
In New Jersey, a high school teacher is under fire for recent comments she made during class, reportedly saying she hated the Korean culture and telling Korean students, "I hate Koreans."
The teacher, whose name is being withheld, teaches Spanish at the prestigious Bergen Academies High School in Hackensack. According to The Korea Daily, the teacher asked students what their native countries of origin were. When a Korean student answered "Korea," the teacher reportedly said, "I hate Korean." Later, in another class, she allegedly asked Korean students to raise their hands and repeated the sentiment.
School administrators say the teacher has been reassigned to different classrooms and offered verbal apologies to the students. But community leaders representing ten Korean American organizations are now calling for the teacher to be fired, among other demands, claiming it wasn't an isolated incident. The teacher's remarks are allegedly part of a "years-long pattern" of derogatory comments and discriminatory behavior.
Hoboken city councilman emerges victorious after racist fliers called him a "terrorist."
The Jersey Journal
Awwww yeah. Take that, racists! The Hoboken councilman who was targeted with a racist flier calling him a "terrorist" has won the city's mayoral race, becoming the first Sikh mayor in the state of New Jersey.
Just days before the election, fliers attacking Ravi Bhalla were anonymously placed on car windshields in the mid-town area, warning "Don't let TERRORISM take over our Town!" above a picture of Bhalla, who is Indian American and wears a turban and unshorn beard in accordance with his Sikh faith.
The fliers appear to have been a modified version of a mailer previously sent by the campaign of mayoral opponent Michael DeFusco, claiming that Bhalla had an alleged conflict of interest. DeFusco denounced the fliers, saying his campaign had nothing to do with them. Whoever's responsible -- surprise, racists are anonymous cowards -- they were probably pretty disappointed with the election results.
On Tuesday, Bhalla emerged the historic winner atop a field of six candidates, garnering 34 percent of the vote. Congratulations to Ravi Bhalla, the first Sikh to be elected mayor of a New Jersey municipality. About time.
School board candidates Jerry Shi and Falguni Patel are not going anywhere.
Awwww yeah. Take that, racists! In New Jersey, the two school board candidates who were targeted with racist "Make Edison Great Again" mailers that made national headlines won seats in the election on Tuesday.
Last week, voters in Edison received postcards, mailed anonymously, warning "The Chinese and Indians are taking over our town!" and calling for the deportation of school board candidates Jerry Shi and Falguni Patel.
Shi and Patel, who respectively claimed their seats with 6,259 and 6,115 votes, will serve a three-year term on the Edison Township Public Schools board. So yeah, they're not going anywhere.
Racist flier attacks Sikh mayoral candidate in New Jersey.
What the hell, New Jersey? For the second time within a week, a racist flier attacking a local candidate has been circulated anonymously. The latest one targets a Sikh mayor candidate in Hoboken.
On Friday night, fliers attacking Hoboken councilman and mayor candidate Ravi Bhalla were anonymously placed on car windshields in the mid-town area. The fliers declare "Don't let TERRORISM take over our Town!" above a picture of Bhalla, who wears a turban and unshorn beard in accordance with his Sikh faith.
Bhalla shared the flier on Twitter, assuring supporters that "we won't let hate win."
Racist mailers sent to voters in Edison, New Jersey.
With an election just around the corner, you can always count on some underhanded racist campaigning. But it's still pretty shocking when it's this blatant. The above mailer, targeting Chinese American and Indian American school board candidates, was apparently sent to voters in Edison, New Jersey.
With the super-original slogan "Make Edison Great Again," the postcard implores voters to "Stop Jerry Shi & Falguni Patel From taking over our School Board," with a red "DEPORT" stamped under Shi and Patel's faces.
"The Chinese and Indians are taking over our town!" the anonymous mailer declares. "Chinese school! Indian school! Cricket fields! Enough is enough!" But wait, they're not done yet.
The reverse side says, "Stop the overcrowding! Stop taking over our sports fields! Stop the McMansions! Stop the multiple families living in the same house! Stop wasting school holidays! Stop the outsiders! Let's take back our Edison & our Schools."
Police officer smashes car window to rescue young girl in Costco parking lot.
You'd think people would understand this by now. Parents and caregivers, do not leave children unattended in cars, even for the quickest errands. This week in New Jersey, a mother was arrested after leaving her young daughter unattended inside her parked minivan while she went shopping at Cosctco.
On Thursday in Hackensack, a Bergen County Sheriff's officer smashed a van window to rescue a 2-year-old girl from inside a locked car parked in a Costco parking lot. According to witnesses, the child was "sweat-soaked" and crying profusely. The officer estimated it was at least 80 degrees in the van.
The child's mother, Chaeyoung Lim-Kim, returned with her shopping cart to find a crowd gathered around her car and her daughter in the arms of a sheriff's officer. She was charged with child endangerment.
22-year-old Hinal Patel was responding to a routine call on her last day on the job.
Some tragic news out of New Jersey, where an emergency medical technician, on her last day on the job, was killed when her ambulance got into a fatal accident Saturday morning while responding to a routine call.
22-year-old Hinal Patel and her partner were in their ambulance, responding to a mutual aid request in East Brunswick. It was supposed to be one of one her final calls, on her last day of work as an EMT. Patel, a recent graduate of Rutgers University, was scheduled to start graduate school next month.
According to a police news release, the ambulance had its emergency lights and sirens activated and was crossing an intersection when it was struck by another car. The ambulance overturned and slid into another car. Patel, who was riding in the front passenger seat, was killed.
24-year-old Nyle Kilgore is believed to be behind a string of attacks on Indian residents in North Brunswick.
In New Jersey, police say a man arrested and charged last week for assaulting an Indian man may be responsible for a recent string of violent bias attacks on men of Indian descent in the North Brunswick area.
24-year-old Nyle Kilgore was arrested Wednesday after 57-year-old Rohit Patel was found lying on the side of the road, bleeding from his head. Kilgore apparently got out of his car, followed Patel, then knocked him out with a blow to the head. Patel suffered broken teeth and received stitches on his mouth and forehead.
Police say Kilgore targeted Patel because he is Indian.
Crew connected to robberies in New Jersey, Texas, Georgia, Michigan and New York
Last week Houston, four people were arrested and charged in connection with a recent series of New Jersey home invasion robberies that targeted Indian American families in Middlesex County.
Chaka Castro, 39, Juan Olaya, 34, Octavius Scott, 22, and Johnisha Williams, 19 -- all from Houston -- were charged in connection with five home invasions in which families were restrained, robbed at gunpoint and assaulted. They were arrested last week for robberies in Texas, and are believed to be involved in home invasions -- also targeting Asians -- in Georgia, Michigan and New York.
Rash of robberies hit homes in Old Bridge, South Plainfield and Edison
This week in New Jersey, law enforcement officials held a forum to address public concern about a rash of home invasion robberies that have targeted Middlesex County's Indian American community.
In the last month there have two home invasions in Old Bridge, one in South Plainfield and one in Edison. At least two people were injured, and all of the homes targeted were from the Indian community. However, investigators are not yet ready to categorize the robberies as "bias crimes."
Do you want to help defend voting rights for Asian Americans?
The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund is looking for volunteers to help monitor upcoming midterm elections for bilingual ballots under the federal Voting Rights Act and to document instances of anti-Asian voter disenfranchisement.
They're looking for volunteers in to work 3-hour shifts on Election Day at polls in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, Louisiana, Virginia, Maryland, and Washington DC. There will be a 90-minute training session for all volunteers.
Here's schedule of AALDEF's poll monitoring trainings:
Ruining ice cream with racism. Not cool, Scoop Coop.
I love ice cream. I shake my fist at anyone who ruins ice cream. In the case of this particular incident, the ice cream was ruined by racism. How dare you ruin ice cream with racism?
Earlier this month at a New Jersey ice cream counter, the mother of a teenage employee told an Asian American customer to "go back to China." The racially charged incident, and subsequent attempts to address and resolve the issue, resulted in a blowup on Facebook and in the local newspaper.
Laura Lim, who is Korean American, was at the Scoop Coop ice cream window in East Hanover on July 12 when the employee at the counter gave her "attitude." The mother of the teenage employee, who was seated near the window, heard the conversation and told Lim to "go back to China." Classy, yo.
Kevin Jun says he still suffers from post-traumatic stress
Nearly three years after being locked up, forgotten and left overnight in a New Jersey police van in freezing temperatures, one of the victims is speaking out, saying he still suffers from post-traumatic stress, including fear of cramped spaces and a distrust of police officers. Really, can you blame him?
20-year-old Kevin Jun was one of five teens (he was 17 at the time) who were rounded up at a party in March 2011 by Fort Lee police officers, taken to the station, then forgotten and left locked outside in a police van for fifteen hours. They were stuck there with no food or water, no bathroom and no way to call out. As temperatures dipped into the 20s, Jun says he was only wearing a t-shirt.
Three teens will each receive $120,000 under a settlement reached with Fort Lee Police Department
Remember those guys in New Jersey who got locked up in a police van, forgotten and left overnight in the freezing cold? Three of those teens filed a lawsuit against the Fort Lee Police Department and over a dozen officers, and will receive $120,000 each under a settlement reached with the department.
Adam Kim, Liam Eisenberg and Kevin Jun were among over dozen teens who were rounded up and placed in a police van when cops broke up a house party in March 2011. According to their complaint, five remained in the van while officers took the others into the station... and never came back. The five teens, who were mostly Asian, were left behind were locked in overnight. They also allege that the cops called them racial epithets.
Somebody f*%ked up. So it wasn't a big surprise when these guys sued, alleging that the officers intentionally inflicted emotional distress, were negligent and showed racial bias.
Do you want to help defend voting rights for Asian Americans? 
